Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
When an employee is terminated from employment and loses group health plan coverage (subject to Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA)), plan administrators should ensure that all qualified beneficiaries are sent, in a timely fashion, COBRA election notices. Plan administrators are not required to ensure actual receipt of the COBRA election notice, but a good-faith […]
If you look around your office right now, how many of your employees or coworkers are engrossed in their cell phones? It’s become all too common to see people more focused on a cell phone screen rather than what’s going on around them. But how is this trend affecting productivity? Would you like to wager […]
U.S. employers’ cost to provide employee benefits, measured as a percentage of pay, increased 24% between 2001 and 2015, fueled largely by a doubling in healthcare benefit costs, according to a new analysis by Willis Towers Watson, a leading global advisory, broking, and solutions company. The analysis reveals a major shift in how employers allocate […]
With data security concerns at an all-time high after the global “WannaCry” ransomware hack in May 2017, you may be wondering if you need to do more to protect your employees’ and customers’ personal information.
The definition of “joint employment” may be heading for another turnaround. Legislation introduced in Congress on July 27 takes aim at a 2015 National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) decision that raised the ire of many in the business community, especially employers that work with franchisees, contractors, and staffing agencies.
Terminated employees who sue often file claims for unlawful discrimination and breach of the covenant of good faith and fair dealing. Recently, the Alaska Supreme Court analyzed how a claim for breach of the covenant of good faith and fair dealing relates to a disability discrimination claim. The court also considered when evidence is sufficient […]
When an employee is terminated due to “gross misconduct,” the termination is not considered a qualifying event, and an employer does not have to offer Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) coverage to the ex-employee (or his or her covered spouse or dependents). Neither the statute, legislative history, nor regulations specifically define the term “gross […]
A number of court cases have illustrated how employers can find themselves in trouble for comments written via email by managers or other decision-makers that indicate an employee’s protected status (e.g., sex, race, age, or taking qualified leave) played a role in the decision to fire them. But here we present a unique scenario that […]
A recent case from the Tennessee Court of Appeals acts as a reminder of the importance of implementing and enforcing policies aimed at preventing sexual harassment in the workplace. The outcome of the case also shows that while you may not be able to prevent all inappropriate behavior by your supervisors, how you respond to […]
Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) plan administrators seeking to better understand how the Health Coverage Tax Credit (HCTC)—including its advance payment system and how it will impact COBRA coverage and documentation—may find useful a new report issued by Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA), as well as corresponding Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recommendations. […]